Yamaha
pulled out all the stops for the 2002 Vipers. Their is not doubt
in this Editor's mind that the Viper will be the hottest sled for
2002 and most likely for 2003. We'll go into the details of the
new model later in the article and you can see all the
specification sheets also, but I want to discuss some of the more
intangibles about the snowmobile first. One being this is one
beautiful snowmobile with a fit and finish that is more European
sport sedan than Japanese snowmobile.
I'm a very
particular person and I always go over everything I buy with a
fine tooth comb looking for the slightest imperfection. My biggest
pet peeve for snowmobiles is paint and decal scheme. I expect the
manufacturers to deliver a fully painted cowl with out runs or
areas where the finish is not consistent. When I picked up my new
Vipers, you can read about it here by clicking this sentence, I
went into critical review mode. I was impressed and grinning like
a Cheshire cat once I saw the snowmobiles in person. I wasn't able
to participate in any prerelease events prior to the snowmobiles
being delivered to the dealers.
The finish
of the blue was crystal clear and had a depth like a hundred coats
of lacquer was applied. The finish was consistent over the entire
snowmobile and the decals were of the highest quality. Not all
manufacturers can attest to this like Yamaha can. The red Viper
was on par with the blue Viper and was absolutely gorgeous. From
the factory, both of these snowmobile processed the best paint
finish, depth of color and clarity, that I have ever seen on a
snowmobile. The decals are extremely tasteful and excellently
applied and complement the overall paint finish nicely.
The
snowmobiles did have a few minor imperfections, but I can say with
any confidence whether they were caused by shipping in the new
steel crates or during dealer prep. The first thing we found was a
lug on the track that was partially torn. I doubt this could have
happened when we loaded or unloaded the sled at the off-road.com
barn in NY state. I hope this is not an indication of the Yokohama
tracks reliability. The other flaw was a paint scratch on the red
Viper's left trailing arm. Overall the snowmobiles were delivered
in perfect condition.
According to
Yamaha's press information we received, "The sound, look and
feel of the new 2002 Yamaha Viper is pure addiction. One venomous
bite is all it takes for performance junkies to discover that this
is one serious machine. Cutting edge styling flows back from the
sculpted nose--past the twin beam, white-light head lamps
--accelerating into the forced air induction intakes -- and swirls
beyond the sculpted seat and twin R1 motorcycle taillights.
Underneath this art in motion is the industry's most advanced and
rigid chassis." This may be over the top for anyone who
doesn't sleep in Yamaha underwear, but they do sort of capture the
'feeling' this snowmobile is going to generate. It's downright
sexy and looks meaner than hell at the same time.
What's
New?
In a nut
shell, only a few very significant items are truly new, but the
items that are new are engineering marvels. This is clearly a case
where the end product is more than a sum of its parts. Many of the
Vipers components and shapes are taken from other models or
carried forward from the VMAX, SX, and SRX models from the last
few years. You'll recognize the familiar shape of the VMAX hood,
but it looks very different with the aggressive air intakes and
hoods vents of the Viper. The graphic below is the big picture of
all the key features that are new on the Viper. I'll point out
some of the most important items that are new or are so improved
from previous years they can be considered new.
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Click picture
for larger image
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All Those
Wonderful Engine Changes!
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This
is the heart of the Viper and its full of Venom! The
engine is basically new from the case up and based on the
legendary SRX 700 engine.
Click
picture for larger image |
The engine
is based on the legendary SRX motor, but it's 696cc triple
powerplant is new from the case up. The engine shares some of the
similar design attributes of the SRX. The triple exhaust ports are
smaller versions of the SRXs, but the cylinder castings are more
compact than the SRX making the cylinders lighter. The Vipers
exhaust ports are also CNC machined which helps provide more
consistent power curves.
Along with
the cylinder castings being lighter in weight, the one-piece head
on the Viper reduces weight even further. The Viper is also the
first Yamaha to offer varied compression ratios by cylinder. The
#1 cylinder ration is 5.9:1 while the #2 and #3 cylinders ratio is
6.7:1. You'll use the same main jet sizes on all the cylinders as
you add pipes or silencers to the Viper. The issues of staged
jetting are completely eliminated. Almost as good as fuel
injection.
The weight
savings continue within the engine with the crank shaft. The
Yamaha tradition of using heavy duty duplex rollers continues as
well as crankshaft welding to provide extra strength. The new
design remove material from the crankshaft where it's not needed
to reduce rotational weight by 1.5 pounds.
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This
is the 2002 SRX 700 crank. The welding is clearly visible
in the image.
Click picture for larger image |
This
is the 2002 Viper 700 crank. You can see the difference
immediately and the welding.
Click
picture for larger image |
The
improvement that you'll notice the second you fire up your Viper,
is the new ignition system. The 18-pole stator design delivers a
whopping 300W of power for the brightest whitest light on the
market. The 360° D.C. ignition system also fires each plug
separately for strong and consistent spark. To continue still with
Yamaha's weight saving measures, rare earth flywheel magnets are
used like in the SRX. Rotating mass is reduced by 2 pounds. The
end result of the new system is a better timing curve that
increases low-end power and throttle response. The lights also
never dim when the snowmobile is idling.
Feeding the
Viper is a trio of Mikuni TM33 flat slide carburetors. As before
the carburetors are liquid heated, which is supposed to increase
fuel economy. The Viper also has a throttle position sensor which
increases low-end horsepower. The carburetors are also vented
directly to the airbox to allow for pressure adjustments due to
the forced air induction. The forced air induction has turned into
a significant marketing tune is more hype than power when you peel
back the layers of the onion. A few things you need to know about
this system. One, the system does not force air from
outside the snowmobile directly into the airbox. You'd be cooking
pistons all day long from powder getting into the airbox and then
snow and water going into the combustion camber. Two, the system does
force air into the engine compartment which in turn does raise the
volumetric pressure within the airbox. Three, this alone does
provide a top-end horsepower gain of around 2 to 3 horsepower.
The Viper
clutching has been thoroughly been worked on also. The new clutch
calibrations increases clutch weight generating 30% more force
during acceleration than lasts years SX 700. The greater V-belt
forces also generates faster shifting for quicker acceleration.
The clutch is now set with a mounting angle of 0.4°. The
increased V-belt pull force on the engine mounts will pull the
clutches into perfect alignment. The net result is increased
V-belt life and efficiency. An engine pre tensioner is available
from Yamaha that would allow a 0.0° mounting angle.
One last
engine item before we move on is another weight saver. The recoil
starter is 15% lighter and larger than last years SX 700. 132 mm
versus 114mm, making the Viper an easy starter.
Chassis
and Suspension
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The
new cast bulkhead is lighter and stronger. The unit
provides a perfect flex free mount point for the front
suspension
Click
picture for larger image
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The
reoccurring theme continues to be weight savings. Numerous changes
to the frame, bulkhead, cooling system heat exchangers and the
generous use of aluminum have taken another 4 pounds off the
chassis. The engine is set lower in the chassis than last years SX
700 lowering the center of gravity and improving cornering
characteristics. Small details that helped remove weight are the
aluminum rear bumper design and the bracing in the engine
compartment.
The Vipers
front suspension is equipped with KYB high pressure gas shocks,
multi-rate springs, and a hefty anti-sway bar. The new cast
bulkhead is flex free allowing the use of larger ball joints and
radius rods. Most of the front suspension components are forged
aluminum to reduce weight again.
The rear
suspension is the tuned up ProAction skid frame with KYB high
pressure gas shocks. The adjustable control rods aren't new, but
they are designed a bit differently than past models. I'd replace
them with the Bender Racing adjusters to make them extremely easy
to adjust on the trail.
Another area
of the chassis and suspension that is all new for 2002, is the the
track. The Yokohama designed and manufactured track has a new
design just for the Viper. The lug material is stiffer than the
rest of the track and the outside portions of the track as also
slightly thicker than the rest of the track. The reduced weight
and design is supposed to increase acceleration. I would have
preferred a 1" Camoplast Predator track like some of the
other Yamaha model received this year.
Some More
Really Neat Stuff!
The
Instrument Panel
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The
R1 inspired gauges are specially modified for cold weather
use. The layout is great and will provide all the
information needed with a quick glance.
Click
picture for larger image
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I've always
been an analog man, but the new instrument panel on the Viper is
one tasty addition. Based on the R1 motorcycle instruments, but
modified for cold weather use, the unit has all the needed
information displayed on compact yet readable display. The
accuracy is dead on with the use of a stepper motor tachometer
drive system. I think the reason this works so well is the
tachometer is still analog while the speedometer, fuel gauge, dual
tripmeters, fuel, oil, water, and check engine light are digital.
The Weight Watchers′ mentality of Yamaha is shown again, the new
gauge package is 2.3 pounds lighter than the SX 700 gauges.
Lighting
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The
new twin headlights is not only beautiful, they are
functionally perfect and bright!
Click
picture for larger image
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As I
mentioned before the headlights are the whitest and brightest I
have ever seen. They never dim and the offer a few neat tricks
also. When the hood is open and the engine running, the headlight
will illuminate the engine compartment. A nice touch for the
occasional plug change or system check while out at night. The
taillight also illuminates the cargo compartment in the seat. No
other snowmobile manufacturer offers these niceties.
Seating
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The
new lighter and roomier seat with a lighted bigger storage
area.
Click
picture for larger image
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The Vipers
new seat deserves to be pointed out. The seat is a Lazy-Boy′ for
the hind quarters. The new seat is not overly sticky, like the MXZ
seats, and provides just the right amount of firmness to be
comfortable on a 200 mile day. The drivers position is roomier
than the 2000 SX 700 seat and the seat material covers more of the
tunnel this year also.
The new seat
offers a larger trunk, which is lighted, and a secure location for
the tool kit Not just a hollowed out location, the tool kit can be
secured in the position with a fastener.
You can
guess what I'm going to say next, the seat is also 23% or 3.3
pounds lighter than the SX 700 seat.
Fuel and
Oil Consumption
The last
item that really impresses me is that not only has Yamaha pumped
18 additional horsepower into the new Viper engine, it used 1/2
the oil and gets 15% better fuel consumption. That is impressive.
The SRX derived oil pump has significantly reduced oil use while
driving in the 25 mph to 45 mph range. The oil cap is also larger,
a much needed improvement, at 2" in diameter.
Conclusion
You've made
it to the bottom, I apologize for the length, but their is some
much to write about when the Viper is concerned. The Viper is
truly an engineering wonder that stirs emotions every time I look
upon it. The fit and finish is pure Yamaha, flawless.
I've never
been so excited about a sled that I never actually spent time in
the seat of. That is a pretty powerful statement, but you can
surmise that the Viper is not going to disappoint. Just by
studying all the improvements that have been poured all over the
Viper you can assure yourself this is one amazing machine.
Lots of
people are going to be disappointed with the Viper however,
they're not going to be able to get one. The Viper is going to be
a rare site on dealers floors. If you haven't already purchased
one, you may be faced with having to buy the SRX or SX 600.
The
laundry list of standard features is listed below,
straight from Yamaha's media kit and brochures. You click
on Viper
or Viper
ER to see exact product specifications details of
each snowmobile. |
Engine
Performance
- New high
horsepower (125 hp in stock form) 700cc triple-cylinder engine
offers many advantages over competitive twins: high power
output, broader powerband, superior throttle response, better
fuel economy and durability.
- Industry-leading
electronic power valves for increased engine performance. The
self-cleaning feature maintains optimum performance.
- Forced
Air Induction boosts engine output and top-end horsepower.
- CNC-machined
exhaust ports and new cylinder port timing deliver excellent
performance.
- New
lightweight engine components include a one-piece cylinder
head, industry-exclusive powder metal forged pistons, and a
new crankshaft for a lightweight and durable engine package.
- Aggressive
clutch settings for hard-hitting performance.
- 300W D.C.
CDI with throttle position sensor and 3D-ignition system
provides strong low-end power and excellent throttle response.
- Industry-leading
liquid-heated carburetors maintain excellent throttle response
and fuel economy.
- New oil
pump improves oil consumption during normal trail riding by
100 percent (compared to SX 700R).
- New large
volume exhaust system reduces noise while delivering high
engine output.
Handling
- The
strongest chassis in the industry features increased aluminum
usage to reduce our already-industry-lightest chassis weight.
New parts include a lighter frame and tunnel design, aluminum
front bumper brackets and aluminum rear bumper.
- Repositioned
engine mounting for increased v-belt efficiency and maintains
a low center of gravity
- Redesigned
cooling system reduces weight.
- ProAction
SXV rear suspension calibration features rebuildable,
aluminum-body KYB gas shocks and multi-rate springs to provide
superior pitch control and delivers outstanding driver
confidence.
- Adjustable
rear control rods for increasing or decreasing suspension
weight transfer.
- Inner-ventilated
brake rotor provides superior cooling.
Comfort/Convenience
- LCD
digital gauge with super-accurate stepping motor for the
tachometer. Integrated multiple functions include odometer,
dual tripmeter, self diagnosis, fuel gauge, fuel level
warning, oil level warning, and water temperature warning
lights.
- 300W
magneto system with new dual headlight design for the
brightest light in the industry. Headlight also illuminates
the engine compartment for extra convenience during night
riding.
- Single-point,
Quick-Adjust rear suspension allows the rider to quickly
adjust both effective shock damping and spring rates to suit
their riding style.
- New seat
design for weight reduction, increased luggage space, and
illuminated luggage compartment.
- Large
capacity, 3.2 quart oil tank with a new, larger easy-fill
opening.
- New oil
fill opening area is more than two-times larger!
- Standard
tunnel protectors and front heat exchanger guard allows for
easier after-market track studding.
- Exclusive
mechanical parking brake for peace of mind when trailering.
- Exclusive
adjustable brake lever for a custom fit.
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